If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Re: Were I him?

You're right - it's pretty awkward. It's just about acceptable though - if rather mannered - in some formal contexts - possibly in public speaking. This sort of conditional is sometimes fossilized in idioms: "Had I but known" is a pretty common alternative to 'If I'd only known".

Here are some Google results:

Results 1 - 10 of about 9,250 English pages for "Had I but known".
Results 1 - 10 of about 28,800 English pages for "If I'd only known".

So, about a third of the worldwide hits. But in UK pages, the ratio flips from 1:3 to 3:1:

Results 1 - 10 of about 378 English pages for "If I'd only known" :.uk.
Results 1 - 10 of about 1,040 English pages for "Had I but known" :.uk.